


heal

by akidyne



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: 0.2 spoilers, Angst, Astral Projecting - freeform, F/M, First Meetings, Insecurity, Magic - Freeform, Realm of Darkness (Kingdom Hearts), donald has anxiety, healing as an extended metaphor, the REAL reason he always lets you die in game instead of hitting that mf x button
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-09
Updated: 2019-02-09
Packaged: 2019-10-25 07:26:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 875
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17720753
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/akidyne/pseuds/akidyne
Summary: in which donald has a dream- or maybe not.





	heal

you’re not supposed to be able to dream of places you haven’t seen, but donald has always had an active imagination. he is dreaming, he can tell easily— it’s always been a blessing and a curse to him. sometimes it’s fun to control your dreams— however, sometimes you have nightmares.

donald has a sneaking suspicion that’s what this is, looking around at the tall pillars of darkness, light barely cast from the glowing blue veins of sickly energy pulsing on them. in his professional opinion as an extremely talented mage— they look like bad news.

thunk.

bouncing off the top of his head, a small charm lands on the ground. it’s blue, vaguely star shaped. he bends down and takes it in his hand, turning it over and trying to make some sense of it. ideally, this isn’t some kind of terrible omen of things to come—

and just as he’s thought it, he’s sent sprawling to the ground by a falling object, completely winded. usually, in dreams, you don’t get to feel a sensation like being winded— he hates this already. the object— or, maybe not— squirms in top of him, rolling off. he turns onto his side despite his aching lungs, and is very, very surprised to see a young woman standing before him.

donald lets out a surprised quack, jumping up to his feet and drawing his wand— “w-w-w-whaaaaaat?” you’re also not supposed to be able to dream of people you’ve never seen, and he’s certain he’s never seen her before. the woman recoils as well, blue hair dancing around her face as she draws a weapon of her own— he’s never quite seen anything like it before.

“what— what are you?” she rasps, out of breath. where in the f— where did she even fall from?

“i’m a duck,” donald replies as though it should be obvious, and really, it should. “i’m donald.”

“donald…” she repeats, voice clearing up. her posture relaxes and she forces a tired smile. “hello, donald. i’m aqua.”

before donald can get any questions out, the ground below him shudders violently— and from the depths of hell itself bursts a mass of writing black, littered with bulging yellow eyes. for the second time in as many minutes, a horrified quack rips itself from throat as he jumps back, wand readied once again— this might not be a dream.

“what the f—” donald starts, but aqua cuts him off before he can finish his expletive.

“i don’t have a name for them but they’re nothing short of demons!” she cries, her stance readying for a fight once again, this time evidently against something she views as a much bigger threat. “we have to fight!”

the mass of demons rears back, and lunges directly at him, but he can’t seem to make his legs move— he’s stuck, glued to the earth below him. aqua cries out, screaming at him… but he can’t move. as it barrels toward him, the dread sets in— he really isn’t waking up, huh? oh well. he closes his eyes, accepting the inevitable.

it doesn’t come.

instead, there’s a sharp scream and a sickening noise of collision. as donald opens his eyes, he’s met with the sight of the black mass rearing away to circle them as aqua collapses in front of him, body limp. donald rushes to her side, shaking her— this absolutely is not a dream.

“aqua—” he shakes her frantically, as though he could somehow jostle her back to consciousness, back to full health. it’s like there’s a panic alarm blaring in his ears, deafening out everything around him.

donald’s only kind of stupid— and he is more than smart enough to know that that thing is coming back for more. he’s… scared. that woman— aqua, had seemed so alone, so tired… but at the same time, that horrifying mess of creatures is clearly more interested in her than in it is in him. he… could run— leave here to whatever fate she was destined to meet alone.

yes, he’s scared— running removes the risk of any failure, any loss. it’s a choice, to leave. nine out of ten times he tries even the simplest of cure spells, he fails at them… if he tries to save her, and can’t manage it, then… she dies. because he failed her. if he runs… it’s not his fault. and yet, the look in her eyes— it’s awful, but he… can’t.

“... _curaga_!”

donald screws his eyes shut, unwilling to see the spell fizzle and fail— unwilling to see aqua engulfed by that darkness because of him. but then… she starts coughing. his eyes fly open and he is able to witness her sit up, before jumping to her feet in time to pull them both out of the way of another attack from the demons.

“you’re alive?” donald quacks, blinking his eyes to see if this is really true. his spell… was a success?

“i am!” aqua beams at him, eyes bright with little trace of that former loneliness. “you’re incredible…!” she rushes to hug him quick while they still have a chance, and pulls away. “now, donald. will you fight with me?”

he blinks at her once, twice; before grinning. “you bet i will!”

 

**Author's Note:**

> zag'd on em   
> follow my twt @TSUKINYAGALEO


End file.
